


Building the Bureau

by DJDragon15



Series: Lup the Amnesiac Elf [2]
Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Cam's only mentioned a little bit but yeah, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-13
Updated: 2018-05-04
Packaged: 2019-03-17 17:59:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13664304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DJDragon15/pseuds/DJDragon15
Summary: After remembering who she is, Lup joins Lucretia in her search for the Grand Relics they unleashed on this world.





	1. A Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lup remembers everything, and Lucretia finds she has some explaining to do.

Lup’s mind felt like a battle zone, with bombs going off over every inch of it. She dropped the flask she was holding and fell to her knees clutching her head. Lucretia grabbed her shoulders and said something, but she couldn’t process anything, the room was spinning too fast for her to do anything but hold on for dear life. The static in her head was getting louder and louder, and Lup felt just like she did the when the Voidfish first erased her memory all those months ago, and she briefly thought she might pass out again.  
  
Then in an instant the static cleared and she realized that she remembered something from before she woke up in the forest alone. Then she realized that she remembered EVERYTHING from before she woke up in the forest alone. She slowly rose up to her feet, the ground around her no longer spinning, and she looked into the eyes of the woman she now remembered to be one of the greatest friends she had ever had.  
  
"Lup?" Lucretia said cautiously, almost afraid to rattle the elf further after her episode. "Are you feeling alright? What can you re-"  
  
Lucretia was interrupted as Lup threw her arms around her and embraced her like the family she now knew her to be. "Oh, Luc!" Lup shouted, her eyes tearing up. "I'm so sorry I left, it was so stupid of me, so selfish! I should have given an explanation but I didn't think I'd be gone for all these months! Taako and Barry, they aren't too mad at me, are they? I know they must have been worried sick, do you think-"  
  
Lup stopped in her tracks and slowly pulled away from Lucretia as she realized the misalignment of the facts she had learned today.  
  
“Wait, where ARE the others?” Lup asked, looking around the room they were in. “Come to think of it, where the hell are we? This doesn’t look like the Starblaster? And why was Taako doing some traveling cooking show? Did he leave the ship after I did? Luc, what’s going on?”  
  
Lucretia’s eyes darted to the floor, unable to meet Lup’s confused gaze. She eventually raised her head and looked at the Voidfish in the chamber beside them, and Lup followed her example.  
  
“Is that Fisher?” Lup said, disbelievingly. The pieces were starting to come together in her mind, and she didn’t like the picture they were forming. “Where’s Magnus? He wouldn’t just leave Fisher behind, even if you were watching over it. Lucretia, where is everyone else?”  
  
When Lucretia looked back at the floor, even more desperate to avoid Lup’s gaze this time, the elf squinted her eyes at her old friend.  
  
“Lucretia,” Lup whispered in a soft but demanding tone, “what did you do?”  
  
Lucretia finally looked back at Lup and began to cry. “I’m so sorry Lup. It wasn’t easy, but I couldn’t keep killing this world, I hate to make you all forget so I could fix what we had done. I couldn’t stand by and let this world be destroyed by the weapons we created.”  
  
Lup’s eyes widened as Lucretia confessed her actions. The day that she passed out in the woods, Lucretia had fed the logs of their journeys to the Voidfish.  
  
“I had no idea what I was doing to you, Lup!” Lucretia continued, shouting now. “I couldn’t find you, I looked all over and there was no trace of you. I thought you were...” Lucretia paused, unable to finish her thought. “If you were, I couldn’t inflict that pain on the others! How would your brother feel? Your love? How would they feel knowing that the most important piece of their world was missing, but having no way of even beginning to track her down? I wanted them to all to be happy until I brought them back, I couldn’t let them suffer like that, I am so sorry Lup!”  
  
Lup didn’t respond to her reasonings, but instead posed another question, one that needed an immediate answer.  
  
“Where is Barry?” She asked. “He wasn’t there with Taako, and I get they wouldn’t remember each other so they had to be separated, but where did you put him?”  
  
Lucretia hesitated, but relented as Lup glared at her. “I don’t know. He disappeared the day I fed our mission to Fisher. He must have realized what was happening and ran.”  
  
Lup nodded, seemingly satisfied with this answer. “So Barry is MIA, Taako is living a life on the road, where’d you put the other three? Merle probably got some cozy life on the beach somewhere, and you probably gave Magnus the humble life he always deserved, but what about-“  
  
Lup stopped again as she noticed the gnome standing behind Lucretia. She walked towards him, and in a quiet voice, she asked, “Captain? Is that you?”  
  
Davenport looked at the strange woman and replied “Davenport?”  
  
Lup turned back to Lucretia and repeated her earlier question. “What did you do?”  
  
“I didn’t mean to.” Lucretia said wearily, as if she asked herself this very question every day. “Captain Davenport was so invested in our mission for the last hundred years, that making him forget left him only a shadow of who he once was. I couldn’t leave him alone, it wouldn’t have been safe for him. I keep him close to me as best I can, to make sure he stays safe and happy.”  
  
“Why can’t you let him remember?” Lup said incredulously. “Why can’t you give him back his mind?”  
  
“I need to fix our mistakes, if he remembered he would forbid me, and I can’t have that, not until I undo the damage we’ve done!” Lucretia retorted, much more sure of her answer this time.  
  
“Then why bring me back? What makes me so different? I was a shell just like Davenport! Why give me back my memories?”  
  
“You were alone, Lup.” Lucretia answered, “You were lost, and when I found you I could tell, you were scared. You needed someone to help you understand the world you had found yourself in.”  
  
She lowered her head. “I won’t deny there were selfish reasons for my bringing you here as well.” Lucretia muttered, sounding almost ashamed of herself. “I knew you would try to contact Taako, and when confronted with a woman who looked just like him and who he couldn’t remember, it would raise to many questions. And I suppose I was lonely, even with the captain and with Lucas here, I don’t have anyone who knows what we’ve been through. Bringing you here and restoring your memories, I suppose I hoped I wouldn’t be so alone anymore.”  
  
Lup sighed and walked towards Lucretia and hugged her once more. Despite her initial anger, she couldn’t stay mad at her. Lucretia was family, and at the moment, she was the only family Lup had left.  
  
After a moment, Lup pulled away again and asked her, “Is that it? You brought me back because you missed your family?”  
  
Lucretia smiled sadly, and replied, “Well yes, that is most of it, but I’m afraid my selfishness doesn’t end there.”  
  
Lup cocked her head slightly in confusion, and Lucretia continued, “Lup, I brought you back because I need your help.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, it's been a minute! I'm sorry this took so long for me to update this story, when I took a break after the first arc ended I only intended for that break to be a week, but things came up and that week became a month, and that month became two, and I lost motivation to start writing again. But I'm back! And I think this arc will end up being 5 chapters, and hopefully I can get them out as regularly as the chapters in the first arc were, but we'll have to see. Let me know what you think about my first chapter back!


	2. Lucretia's Request

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucretia asks Lup for help with the Relics, but the two don't agree on what that should mean.

Lup squinted at Lucretia for a moment, not sure how to respond to what she had just been asked. Lucretia stared back with a determined expression on her face, looking more sure of herself than she had since she had first brought Lup into this room.  
  
"You want me," Lup began slowly, "to help you gather the Relics."  
  
"That's right." Lucretia responded.  
  
"The Relics that we made and separated so that the Hunger couldn't find us."  
  
"The very same."  
  
" So that you can use the Light of Creation to put a barrier around this plane."  
  
"Exactly right."  
  
"You do realize that Barry and I were the ones who came up with the idea to put cut the Light into the separate pieces?" Lup asked Lucretia incredulously.  
  
"I'm very aware of that Lup." Lucretia answered.  
  
"And you remember that we explained to you why that wouldn't work?" She continued, raising her eyebrows.  
  
"I remember the conversation we had Lup." Lucretia retorted firmly.  
  
"So why then, Luc," Lup sighed, "do you think that I would agree to help you do this?"  
  
"I had hoped you had changed your mind." Lucretia responded, raising her eyebrows now. "Was I wrong in assuming that you left so that you could track down the Phoenix Fire Gauntlet and get it away from the people who were misusing it?"  
  
Lup stepped back, surprised that Lucretia was able to piece together why she had left so easily. "That's... That's different." She muttered, looking away.  
  
"And how exactly is that different Lup?" Lucretia inquired, cocking an eyebrow.  
  
Lup glared back at her. "Because I wasn't going to destroy the Gauntlet, or put it back together with the other Relics. I was going to hide it away, so that people could still desire it and feed the Light's needs, but it could never be used."  
  
"I understand that, it's something I wish we had all thought of when we first made them, but there's no sense wallowing in our past mistakes." Lucretia managed, slowly losing her resolve. It seemed to Lup that part of what made Lucretia so sure of herself was that she wasn't the only one who felt this way.  
  
"I can agree with that much." Lup said finally. "We've made our mistakes, and we can't go back and fix them. Not without Magnus' Relic at least." She joked, and the two women shared a chuckle.  
  
"But you are right that we need to figure out a way to fix our mistakes." Lucretia started to smile, but Lup continued, "That said, I don't think that gathering the Relics is the right way to go about that. We can't cut off this plane, everyone and everything on it will die."  
  
"We still don't know for sure that the Hunger wouldn't starve first." Lucretia insisted, then sighed as she added, "Although it is undeniable that there's a great chance of the Hunger finding us again well before we manage to gather all of the Relics again."  
  
Lup nodded, then her eyes lit up as she thought of something new. "But if that happens, maybe we could escape at that point. We could try again on another plane, and we'd have the Light -or at least most of it- so the Hunger would have no way to consume this world."  
  
Lucretia smiled wide at Lup's sudden enthusiasm. "So you'll help me? You'll work with me to gather the Relics again?"  
  
Lup looked at her again, contemplating the offer. "On one condition. We bring the others in and give them back their memories." Lup raised her hand and as Lucretia began to argue. "Not right now, I know they wouldn't agree and you won't go against their wishes. But once we find enough of the Relics and the Hunger finds us again. When that happens the first thing we do is find the four of them and bring our family back together. At that point, it won't matter if we hide the Relics or not, the Hunger will be on its way and it'll be out of their hands. Then the seven of us together can find the rest of the Relics and be ready once the Hunger arrives."  
  
Lucretia seemed hesitant. "I set up lives for the boys here, aside from Barry of course. It's quite possible that they'll find reasons to want to stay, and we won't be able to convince them to find the Relics if we do bring them back, and they may refuse to leave, considering the extra time they've been given on this world compared to all the others."  
  
Lup crossed her arms and tilted her head. "Should have thought of that before you wiped their memories and scattered them across the land, huh?" She accused sarcastically, but changed subjects when Lucretia averted her gaze. "All the more reason to find the Relics quickly, and make sure that that won't happen."  
  
After a moment, Lucretia spoke. "I suppose it's only fair. I didn't want to do this to them, and I certainly don't want to prolong their absence, none of them deserved to lose what I've taken from them." She reached a hand out to her friend and said, "Once the Hunger's scouts appear in the sky, we'll find them again, you have my word, Lup."  
  
Lup took her hand with her own and pulled her into a warm hug. After a moment the two pulled apart and she smiled at Lucretia.  
  
"Let's get to work then."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, sorry everyone! I promised this chapter would be out by the end of the week I posted the first chapter during, and that was two weeks ago! I just got caught up with class work and shit, I don't have as much free time this semester as I did when I was writing the last arc. That said, I'll try to be more proactive about writing and posting the rest of the chapters and hopefully it won't take me another two weeks to write another chapter, especially since this one is a little short (sorry about that too.)


	3. Touring the Base

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lup and Lucretia take a moment to unwind and catch up.

The two women walked out of the room housing the Voidfish. Lup looked around them, taking in her surroundings now that she wasn't being made dizzy by simply standing on the airbase. It was massive, housing a few other dome shaped buildings like the one they had just left, but most of the space was left unfilled.  
  
Lup stared at Lucretia in shock and asked, "What is all this, Luc? It's only been about a year since I left the Starblaster, what happened to it?"  
  
Lucretia grinned sheepishly. "It's around here somewhere, I needed someplace to hide it, and the Millers were happy to help me set this base up. I just couldn't let go of the whole 'living in the sky over the rest of the world,' you know? Thought I will admit that I think they might have overdone it."  
  
"The Millers?" Lup asked, struggling to recall why the name sounded so familiar, "Weren't those the scientists that we met when we first landed in this dimension?"  
  
As if on cue, a scrawny disheveled looking man in a white lab coat came running up to the duo and said, "Sorry if you noticed any power problems before, Lucretia. I was trying to automate the cannons to make it easier for you to go planetside, just in case you got a lead on any of the Relics and wanted to go investigate. The whole system got fried though, so the elevator from the hanger might not be working right now, I'll try and fix it, but it might be down for a few days. I would've given you a warning but I figured I'd be able to get the system running before you got back from the show."  
  
Lucretia shakes her head and says, "Thank you for the warning, Lucas. But I would've appreciated it earlier, when I was actually trying to use the elevator. Things were a little tense when Lup and I first arrived here."  
  
Lucas looked at Lup and blinked, as if he were only just now realizing the Elf standing next to Lucretia.  
  
"Lup? I thought you disappeared months ago!" Lucas said, causing Lup to grimace. "Did Lucretia find you after Taako's show?"  
  
"Actually, she found me at Taako's show, it's a long story." Lup said, eager to forget the unpleasant conversation she and Lucretia had had when they first reunited. "Why don't we talk about it later?"  
  
"Yeah that's probably a good idea, I'm gonna go grab my mother and see if she can help me figure out the issue with the cannons." Lucas said more to himself than to the others, and he ran off again.  
  
Lup looked at Lucretia judgingly. "That's who you enlisted in your quest to save the world?" Lup asked incredulously.  
  
Lucretia laughed. "It's not as if I had many options, this is something not many people know the truth of. And besides, he and his mother are both very intelligent, if you remember their research of the Planar system nearly matched that of our own back at the IPRE, and they don't have the Light of Creation to learn from."  
  
"Well it's a good thing you have me to help now," Lup chuckled as she continued walking. "So, how is this going to work? We travel around together, coming back here between leads?"  
  
"I think it would be better if we took turns chasing leads, and at least one of the two of us should be on the base at all times." Lucretia said, powering through Lup's look of disbelief. "That way one of us can make sure that the Captain doesn't get worse, and they can also manage the cannons so whoever is down on the ground can call for an evacuation right away in the case of an emergency."  
  
"Okay, that does make a lot of sense," Lup sighed, "But I was really looking forward to the two of us going on some crazy adventures together. I kinda got my fill of being alone this past year, even if I didn't remember that I wasn't always alone for half of it, you know?"  
  
"Of course I understand, Lup." Lucretia replied, putting a consoling hand on Lup's shoulder. "But it's safer this way. If someone somehow gets the better of us with one of the Relics, at least this way we won't both be lost. This way-"  
  
"Alright, I get it, it makes sense, Luc." Lup interrupted, raising her hands in defeat. "Although I can't pretend it's not a little concerning that you're planning for the potential of our deaths."  
  
Lucretia frowned. "You know how dangerous these Relics are, Lup. We've all seen the destruction they can cause. You already struck out on your own because of how dangerous they are. If we get caught in one of those battlefields where the wars for them are fought, we could end up just like every other soldier that's searching for them. And while you might be able to turn into your lich form and walk away from death like it's nothing, I don't exactly have that luxury."  
  
They both laughed at that, then they walked in silence, and for a moment their mission fell away, and they were just two sisters aboard the Starblaster again, enjoying each other's company like they had for so many years.  
  
"So," Lup said, ending the quiet. "You clearly had no idea that I was going to show up at that show Taako was performing, so what exactly were you doing there? I seriously doubt you thought that he might pull out the Philosopher's Stone or the Gaia Sash."  
  
Lucretia chuckled, then smiled sadly. "I actually was there to check up on him." She replied after a few seconds. "I do it with all three of them. It brings me comfort to see them happy, it helps me be sure that despite all my mistakes, I did something correctly, giving them all a happy story to live in. Whether it's watching Merle build his life on the beach, seeing Taako get to spread his talent to the whole world, or seeing Magnus live the humble rustic life he always quietly wanted, it makes me feel a bit better about this whole situation."  
  
Lup watched Lucretia for a bit, then she smiled. "Thank you, Luc."  
  
Lucretia looked at her questioningly.  
  
"Thank you for giving them such perfect lives to live." She continued, "It would have been so easy for you to drop them all off in a tavern somewhere and just let them all find their way in the world, but you worked so hard to find the perfect homes for each one of them, the place where each one of them could be the happiest they possibly could be."  
  
Lup looked forward and continued on in silence. Lucretia kept staring at her for a while, then she said, "We'll bring them back, Lup. We'll find the Relics, and we'll bring all of them back. You'll have your brother back, and you'll have Barry back, and our family will be made whole again, I promise you. Whatever it takes, I will fix what I have wronged."  
  
Lup smiled and fought back tears. "Thank you, Lucretia."  
  
The women embraced again, and they continued on, ready to begin their work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey this chapter actually got made pretty fast, huh? Admittedly this chapter could probably be cut from the story and it wouldn't change the story all that much going forward, but I felt really motivated to write this scene, especially the little bit of dialogue right at the end. I hope y'all like it, and a new chapter will probably be coming in just a few days!  
> And it's been over a month, haha I'm the worst


	4. Wonderland

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lup anxiously waits for Lucretia to return from her newest mission to find the Animus Bell.

"This doesn't feel right, Dav." Lup said, pacing around Lucretia's room aboard the moonbase. The room was well organized and clean, a stark contrast to Lup's own room, everything set up to be easily located the exact moment that it was needed, and if anything was missing, it would be easy enough to tell what that thing was. On this cold morning, that thing was Lucretia herself.  
  
Davenport was sitting at Lucretia's desk, watching Lup walk in circles and rambling more to herself than to him, though he stayed, confident that she would be glad for the company.  
  
"She should've checked in by now, right? I know that sometimes we go a while without calling back to base, but it's been three days, we should've heard from her by now!"  
  
Lup looks up at Davenport, who shrugs helplessly but puts on what he hopes is a reassuring smile. Lup smiles back at him, but her smile fails to mask the fear she's been feeling.  
  
"I mean, she did manage to find the Bulwark staff without much problem." Lup continued. "That tribe was easy enough to convince to give it to us, after all. But that was months ago! We haven't found any of the others since. And now the Animus Bell just drops into our laps? It was obviously a trap, she should've let me come with her. Screw our normal protocol, that thing is dangerous, Barry never should have made it, and Lucretia never should have gone alone and I-"  
  
Just then, Lup's Stone of Farspeech started vibrating on Lucretia's desk. Lup ran to the desk and picked up the stone and started shouting into it desperately.  
  
"Lucretia, is that you? I've been worried sick, what happened, is everything okay? Do you need back up?!" Lup yelled, on the verge of tears. When she didn't hear anything for a few seconds, Lup continued, "Hello?! Luc! Talk to me!"  
  
Finally, Lucretia's voice came from the stone, barely a whisper.  
  
"Luc?" Lup asked softly. "I didn't quite catch that, what did you say?"  
  
"I'm coming back. Please open the hangar, Lup." Lucretia repeated in a very tired voice.  
  
"On it!" Lup replied, and she launched off towards the hanger without another second of hesitation, leaving Davenport sitting there alone with a confused look on his face.  
  
  
Lup sprinted across the base, her face split into a massive grin.  
_I knew she'd be okay in the end, what was I worrying about?_ Lup thought to herself as she made for the hangar. _This is Lucretia! If she could survive for a year running away from those monstrous judges, whatever this Wonderland could throw at her could never phase her! I'm gonna give her an earful for making me worry for so long, that's for sure, but at least we have two of the relics now._  
  
Lup came to a stop as she reached the doors to the hangar. She threw them open and slammed her fist down on the button to open the bottom so that Lucretia's sphere could rise up into the base with no problem.  
  
Lup was visibly shaking as the sphere floated into the hangar and slowly came to a stop. As soon as it did Lup hit the button again and the floor slowly closed. She slowly stopped shaking as she stared at the sphere and watched it not open.  
  
After about half a minute of staring at the sphere, Lup began to grow worried again. She started walking towards it slowly, pulling the Umbra staff from its place at her side. As soon as she did that however the sphere finally started to open, and a figure started to step out of it.  
  
Lup smiled, but that smile quickly turned to an expression of terror as she realized that the figure stepping out was a woman significantly older than the woman she expected to see.  
  
"Who are you, and where is Lucretia?" Lup demanded of the woman, pointing her staff at the woman with angry tears welling up in her eyes.  
  
The woman looked at her with a sad smile and replied, "Honestly Lup, how many conversations are we going to have with you pointing that thing at me?"  
  
Lup dropped her staff as the tears that had been building began to pour down her cheeks as she whispered, "Luc?"  
  
Lucretia nodded and began to walk towards Lup.  
  
"What happened to you?" Lup asked, staring at the woman in front of here. Lucretia had been aged considerably, her face now sporting wrinkles that were nowhere to be seen only three days ago. Her hair, which admittedly had always been a bright white, no longer seemed to be so unusual with her new age. She clung to the Bulwark Staff, which before had been nothing but a conduit for Lucretia's spells, but now seemed to double as a walking stick for her.  
  
"Wonderland was... much more treacherous than we ever could have imagined." Lucretia managed, seeming to be pained just by thinking about what she'd been through. "I had to sacrifice so much to keep going through their games. This isn't just a cosmetic change, Lup." Lucretia stopped only a few steps from Lup and looked her in the eyes. "I had to give up 20 years of my life."  
  
"What... What happened to Cam?" Lup questioned, remembering the sorcerer they had hired to go into Wonderland with Lucretia, a compromise that Lucretia had conceded to in order to convince Lup that they didn't both need to go after the Animus Bell.  
  
Lucretia looked away now. "He was forced to sacrifice far too much too. In the end, he sacrificed himself so that I could escape. He is... He is trapped in Wonderland, and he can no longer leave."  
  
Lup pulled Lucretia into a hug as they both cried. "I'm so sorry Luc, you never should have had to suffer like that, this isn't fair, I never should have let you go in there without me, I knew I should've gone with yo-"  
  
"No!" Lucretia pulled away to look Lup in the eyes. "If you had gone in there with me, all that would have changed is that you would have been trapped in there with Cam! Or I would have been trapped so you could escape! The monsters in charge of Wonderland never would have let us escape with the Bell!"  
  
Lup stared at Lucretia as the tears continued to stream down her face, as she came to a sudden realization.  
  
In a commanding voice, Lup said to Lucretia, "We can't do this alone anymore."  
  
After a moment, Lucretia nodded in agreement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this took a long ass time, sorry y'all. I started working on another piece inbetween this chapter and the last one, and trying to work on both stories left me feeling burnt out with nothing actually finished. So I'm gonna leave that other fic alone for now, at least until this arc of LtAE is complete, and there should be another 2-3 chapters in this arc, so hopefully y'all can look forward to that, and hopefully I'll have at least one other chapter out before April is over! Let me know what you think of this chapter! Oh and I know way back when I started this arc I said it would probably be only 5 chapters, but now it's looking more like 7 or 8, so hopefully that's something you'll all be happy about!


	5. Checks and Balances

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lup and Lucretia try to figure out who to trust with their mission of finding the Grand Relics

The room was dangerously quiet as Lup and Lucretia sat in contemplation. It had been a week since Lucretia returned from her trip into Wonderland, a week since they had agreed that the two of them couldn't continue hunting the relics on their own. A week since they had discussed the implications of that agreement.  
  
Lup stared off into space with a look of intense concentration. She shook her leg at a furious pace, absentmindedly snapping her fingers, lighting little sparks in her hand, letting the small flame die out, then snapping again. The crackles emanating from Lup's hand filled the room, the only sound being made by other occupant, the only sound across the entire moonbase.  
  
Finally, Lup shook her head and looked at Lucretia, who was writing in one of her journals with a grim look on her face, no doubt going over her recounts of her experience, making sure she had gotten every horrible detail onto the paper and out of her head.  
  
"We can't do this alone anymore." Lup said, echoing what she had told a sobbing Lucretia a week prior.  
  
Lucretia stopped writing and looked up to meet Lup's gaze. "You're right," she replied finally, "this is too dangerous a task for just two people to attempt."  
  
Lup smiled darkly. "Especially when only one of us can lich out if the shit hits the fan, am I right?"  
  
Lucretia winced slightly, but chuckled at Lup's attempt at a joke. Lup might have missed it if the two hadn't known each other for so long. Lucretia hadn't gone into details about what had actually happened in Wonderland outside of her having to sacrifice two decades of her life, and Cam having to sacrifice himself so she could escape. Lup had tried to get her to talk about it briefly, but she understood that when it comes to trauma, you can't force someone to heal on your schedule, these things take time. But from Lucretia's response to her joke, Lup was starting to think that her experience had something to do with liches.  
  
She decided to change the subject. "So where should we start? The Millers are a part of our team, and we have the Captain, so that's five of us already, right?"  
  
Lucretia shook her head. "The Millers won't be helping us."  
  
"What do you mean?" Lup asked incredulously, gesturing at the walls and the moonbase beyond them. "They sure seem to be fine with helping us so far."  
  
"And they're more than happy to consult with us as far as scientific endeavors go, but they have no desire to hunt down these relics alongside us, I already asked." Lucretia chuckles slightly. "I imagine my new appearance had something to do with them turning me down, but I can hardly blame them."  
  
Lup sighs. "That makes sense I guess, and I hate to ask, but what about Dav?"  
  
Lucretia closes her book. "Absolutely not. He's in no condition to be going on these missions, he can barely speak as it is!"  
  
"Well that doesn't leave us with a lot of options, Luc." Lup says, "If we can't find help in the people who know about the Relics, we have no choice but to let other people in on the secret."  
  
"I know Lup, but we have to be careful with who we let remember that the Relics exist. If the wrong people are allowed to remember the world will be in peril all over again, and we cannot let that happen." Lucretia urged.  
  
"Of course, but there are plenty of people who have helped us so far in our searches," Lup reasoned, "like what about that cleric who helped us find the tribe that had your staff? Or the warrior who went with me to chase that rumor about the Oculus? Hell, I'm sure there are more spell casters out there like Cam who could help us."  
  
"Perhaps we can start reaching out to some of our hired help and offer them a more permanent job," Lucretia agreed, "but I'm concerned about what might happen when we do find some of the other Relics. We've had quite a few allies turn tail on us once we found a Relic, and those were some unfortunate setbacks."  
  
"That's a good point. Maybe we could limit the opportunities they have to interact with them?" Lup asked. "Like, what if we hire them to only seek out the Relics, then report to us if they're really there and we take charge on that mission going forward?"  
  
"There are a lot of rumors to chase down Lup, and a lot of them could be time sensitive situations." Lucretia retorted. "The two of us simply can't be everywhere at once."  
  
"Well what are we going to do then? How can we figure out who we can trust to go after the Relics and who we can't?"  
  
The two sat in silence for a moment as they struggled to come up with a solution to this problem. They both looked around the room, hoping for some sort of inspiration to strike them, until they both slowly turned their gaze on the answer that had been right in front of them the entire time.  
  
"The Bulwark Staff!" Lup and Lucretia yelled in unison.  
  
"We can test them using the staff!" Lup continued, "If they can resist the temptation of taking it for their own..."  
  
"Then we know we can trust them to go out and find Relics on our behalf!" Lucretia finished, grinning wider than she had in weeks.  
  
"Except," Lup said as she came to a realization, "we did kind of tell all the people who helped us that we wanted to destroy these artifacts. And I don't think they'd be too happy to find out we're actually just collecting them."  
  
"I'm sure we could make it look like we're destroying them when we're really just storing them to recombine them later on." Lucretia replied, then paused. "Although my carrying around the Staff wherever I go may be a bit harder to explain."  
  
A devious smile danced on Lup's lips as she said, "Well, we don't necessarily have to tell them that the staff is one of the artifacts. For all they know it's just a regular old staff."  
  
Lucretia laughed. "Of course, why didn't I think of that? Well, I suppose now that we have some semblance of a plan devised, we can start to recruit some help."  
  
Lup grinned. "We'll have the Light of Creation back in our hands before you know it!"  
  
The two took a moment to celebrate their new plan, and then they took a trip back down to Faerun to get things started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I got back on some sort of a schedule and posted two chapters in less than a week! Maybe I can keep it up for the rest of the arc even!


	6. The Gamekeeper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three months after formally creating the Bureau of Balance, Lup enjoys some downtime and connects with one of the recruits

It had been a few months since Lup and Lucretia had resolved to start hiring people into what they had come to call the Bureau of Balance, and as Lup walked across the Quad, she couldn’t believe her eyes at how different everything seemed. 

There were only about 30 people living on the moonbase now, but the place felt so much more full of life as Lup saw people laying in the grass stargazing, or heading to the newly built arena to get some training in before their next mission. They had hired an artificer to handle the magic items they collected on missions that weren’t Relics, and just a week ago a strange catlike creature had approached them offering to set up a store on their base. They had no idea who he was or how he found out about them but they allowed him to set up shop and his business had already proven to be incredibly helpful. 

_This place doesn’t seem nearly as depressing now that there are actually people to fill up all the space._ Lup thought as she continued on towards the hangar bay. _Honestly, I don’t get how the Millers thought all this space wasn’t too much for Lucretia and Dav to live in by themselves. But at least we didn’t need them to build a new base I guess._

Lup was shaken from her internal monologue as the doors to the hangar bay slide open about 20 feet ahead of her and reveal a party of three, made up of a flamboyant drow, a surly bugbear, and a rather crestfallen looking half elf. 

The group looked distracted and they were arguing amongst themselves as they came out of the hangar bay. The drow was the first to notice Lup, looking up and immediately changing his demeanor to greet her. 

"Oh why hello Madam Lead Reclaimer, what a lovely surprise to see you!" The drow shouted in a heavily accented voice, "We were just, uh, coming back from a mission, but we didn't find any Relics as of yet I'm afraid." 

"Well, thanks for the update Brian. I wasn't really looking for an update though, I'm just passing through." Lup chuckled. She looked up at the bugbear and added, "Why the long faces Johann? Jal? It's not like dead ends are unusual." 

The half-elf, Johann, lowered his head even further than he already had. He fiddled with his violin and muttered something about it being no big deal. 

Jal in contrast put on a smile, but still seemed frustrated. “I’m just a little sore from the trip up, don’t worry about it boss.” He said gruffly, “Speaking of trips, where are you headed? Got a lead on one of the Relics?” 

Lup shook her head and replied, “Nope, it’s a personal trip, I’m headed to see another Sizzle it up with Taako show.” 

“I wouldn’t have taken you for a fan of cooking shows.” Jal chuckled, then continued, “You know, I always thought you and that Taako looked a lot alike.” 

Lup coughed and quickly retorted, “What are you trying to say, that all Sun Elves look the same?” Raising an eyebrow at Jal for emphasis. 

"I didn't mean it like that, I just meant-" Jal stuttered, trying to compose himself. "I- um- I'm heading to the arena!" 

As Jal ran off, Brian clasped his hands together and exclaimed, "And I'm off to the Fantasy Gashapon! I hear Leon has some fascinating new toys up for grabs!" And he sauntered off as well, leaving just Johann and Lup in the opening of the hangar bay. 

Lup began to walk into the hangar, but stopped and looked back at Johann who was still fiddling with his violin in silence, clearly distressed. In a soft voice Lup asked, "What happened out there Johann?" 

Johann continued staring at the ground for a while, then he finally said, "I got a lead on one of the Relics from someone in town. He had helped me out before so I trusted him. He led Brian, Jal, and I to where he said he had heard it was, and it really was there. The Oculus was right in front of us." 

"Wait, you really did find a Relic?" Lup began, "So what's the pro-" 

"I was thanking him for his help, when all of a sudden he grabbed the thing and put it on." Johann continued, "Suddenly we were facing down about a dozen golems we'd never dreamed of. We barely managed to get out of there with our lives." 

Johann turned around to look at Lup. "Because of me a good friend is trapped under the thrall of one of those things, and two other friends nearly died trying to fix my mistake. Ma'am, I don't think I'm really cut out for being a Seeker, and I just don't know how I can be of help to the Bureau at this point." 

Lup sighed softly, and walked out of the hangar bay, gesturing to Johann and saying, "Follow me buddy." 

The two walked down the stairwell that Lucretia had first led Lup down so many months ago, until finally they arrived at the chamber of the Voidfish. 

"Ma'am, what... what are we doing down here exactly?" Johann asked cautiously. 

"I'm sure you remember Fisher, you did meet him when we first hired you." Lup said, not exactly answering. "Well, he's been around with the Director and I for a long time, a lot longer than we've been on this base. And sometimes..." She trailed off, hesitating. 

Johann looked at Lup curiously, and she continued. "Sometimes I have doubts, just like you're having now. Sometimes I don't see how what we're doing is helpful, and I feel like this whole thing is a waste of our time. When that happens, I come down here and just sit with Fisher for a little while. It reminds me of when things were better, and that I keep fighting so that I can have those good times back again. Maybe he can do that for you too." 

"Wow, that's really sweet Ma'am," Johann said, gazing at the Voidfish. After a moment, he looked back at Lup and asked, "You know, I've always meant to ask. What does it eat?" 

"Well he doesn't really need to eat, per se." Lup answered, "But he does really seem to like information. Histories, Novels, Songs, anything like that." 

They stood there staring at Fisher together for a while, just appreciating the moment. 

After a while, Lup spoke up. "Taako is my brother, you know." Johann looked at her in shock, but didn't reply. "We used to be so close once, but he doesn't remember me. That's why I go to those shows, I never miss one if I can help it. My hope is that once this is all over, I can find him again and we can reconnect. Him and... the rest of our family. Oh!" 

Lup's eyes lit up as she suddenly turned to Johann. "I know another way you can help the Bureau, if you're up for it!" 

"Um, what do you have in mind?" Johann replied, confused by the exuberance abruptly cutting short that somber moment. 

"Fisher hasn't gotten a good meal in a while, really. I give him some snacks every now and then when I sit with him, but the Director and I are too busy to prepare a really good feast for the big guy, and Ma- uh, his original owner, isn't around to spend time with him anymore." Lup explained, "Maybe that could be your new job! You could write songs for Fisher here and keep him well fed! I'm sure he'd appreciate it, and who knows, maybe it would help to improve moral around here." 

Johann looked back and forth between the Voidfish and Lup, finally saying, "Well, I could give it a try, if you really think it would help." 

Johann put his violin away and pulled out a harp. He plucked a few strings as he looked up at Fisher, hoping for some kind of reaction. As Fisher hummed the tiny piece back at him, his face broke out into a massive grin. 

"Something tells me he likes it bud!" Lup said, grinning just as wide. 

Johann turned to Lup, more excited than she had ever seen him. "Thank you for this, I won't let you down Ma'am!" 

Lups grin turned to a sweet smile and she replied, "Call me Lup, Johann." 

Johann's face went slack for a second, but quickly turned back into a smile. "Thank you, Lup."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, three chapters released on schedule in a row! This arc is just about wrapped up, I can only see a couple more chapters being put out before this part of the story is finished, and once it is I'll probably take a short break before starting the next arc, and I might write some other stuff in the meantime. Let me know what you think about this chapter!


	7. First Rites

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tracking down the thief who stole the Oculus comes with a serious cost, forcing Lup and Lucretia to reassess how the Bureau of Balance functions.

This isn't what was supposed to happen. A month of Lup personally tailing the guy who took the Oculus was supposed to end with a big win for the Bureau. It was supposed to cheer up Johann and relieve him of his guilt. It was supposed to bring Lup and Lucretia one step closer to reuniting their family. There was supposed to be a reward for all their hard work. 

It wasn't supposed to end with a death in their new family. 

Things started smoothly enough. With Lucretia's help, the Seekers were able to slowly but surely pin down the thief, until they finally had him trapped, they knew where he was going to be and when. Then it came time for Lup to lead a team of Reclaimers to take him down and recover the Relic, accompanied by Jal, since they needed a Seeker to confirm the Oculus was actually there. And maybe just a little bit because he wanted payback. 

They managed to corner the thief in a cave and had beaten him without much trouble, half a dozen people trained to handle situations like this proved too much for him. He was knocked out and tied up before Lup even needed to cast a spell. She saw the mission as a good proving ground for the Reclaimers and was proud to tell her trainees they were going to be legends in the Bureau for this. 

And she was right about that, but she was about to find out that she had the why about it wrong. 

One of the Reclaimers went to recover the Oculus from the thief after the fight was over. The fight had ended when a misfired fireball knocked the Relic off of his face, and the battle was suddenly deeply, massively one-sided. The halfling recovering the Oculus reached the Relic and picked it up, then went to put the Relic in her pocket for safekeeping. Then she stopped, stared at it for a few seconds, and lifted the monocle to her face. 

Lup saw this and pulled the Umbra Staff out, desperate to cast something, anything, to stop what was unfolding, but it was too late. 

Two massive fireballs collided in the center of the room, and everyone was knocked to the ground except for the two who had cast them. 

Lup held the halflings attention for as long as she could, allowing the other members of the Bureau to escape. Soon only three remained, including Lup, but she was spent. Deflecting fireballs and shards of rock and false monsters was proving to be too much for her, and she knew it. 

Just a little longer, long enough for the others to escape. Lup thought, forming a plan. Then, I can let her beat me, and I can lich out of here, I just need to- 

The next few things that happened were all at once. The halfling conjured into reality a massive boulder and flung it at the exit to the cave, and subsequently the three still in the cave. Lup opened her mouth to yell to the others to leave her, that she'd be okay, but before she could, she felt a strong pair of arms grab her and throw her from the cave, and for a brief moment she though Magnus had found her. 

As she stood and looked back into the cave, for just an instant she saw Jal and Will, a short human with an eyepatch, facing down the halfling, covering their escape, knowing full well they wouldn't be escaping themselves. 

Then the boulder hit the exit to the cave, and they were gone. 

Lup didn't remember much after that. She knows she had tried to get back into the cave, screamed at the other Reclaimers to help her as they argued that they needed to regroup at the moonbase, and she collapsed into tears over the loss of more found family members as Lucretia herself arrived on scene to help bring her back to base. 

Soon Lup and Lucretia sat somberly in their office for the first time since Lucretia returned from Wonderland. 

"What do we do now?" Lup said, "This is uncharted territory for us, Luc. We've never had someone from within the Bureau steal a Relic. We've never had someone within the Bureau kill other Bureau members. How do we fix this?" 

Lucretia sighed. "We need to deal with the missing Relic, the Oculus is in the hands of someone who actually understands what they're holding and that's not good." She answered after a time. "We can't send the Seekers after her, she knows too much about how they operate, she'd escape them with ease." 

"And we can't send the Reclaimers, she's trained with most of them and knows how they fight." Lup added, "and we have no guarantee that whoever we send won't fall to the same fate." 

"So, we need to create a new branch of the Bureau." Lucretia suggested. 

"Agents that specialize in bringing in former agents who've gone rogue?" Lup continued incredulously. 

"Exactly!" Lucretia answered ecstatically, "That way, they aren't there to recover the Relic, they're just there to apprehend the person who betrayed the mission. The chances of them coming into contact with the actually Relics can stay low, and the Reclaimers can recover the Relic once the situation has calmed down!" 

"That's brilliant Luc, that could really work!" Lup said, smiling a bit. 

"There is still the problem of Jal and Will, sadly." Lucretia said, "I'm not sure how to handle this, like you said we've never had someone in the Bureau killed, especially not by another member." 

Lup looked down at the ground in silence. After a few moments she muttered, "There is one thing we could do." 

Lucretia cocked an eyebrow at her, and Lup sighed before replying. 

"We could feed Fisher the information about them." Lup managed, trailing off at the end. 

"Lup!" Lucretia gasped. "After what I did to you, I'm surprised you would suggest that we do that to someone else, especially agents you considered friends." 

"They're not alive anymore," Lup said, fighting back tears again. "They can't forget themselves like I did, the two of them against someone with Dav's Relic? They never stood a chance." 

"I'm not judging you for suggesting this Lup, I'm simply surprised is all. "Lucretia answered hastily. "Jal and Will surely had families, people who would miss them." 

"Exactly, Luc. They had families," Lup retorted bitterly, "families who didn't know about their secret jobs here. Families who have no idea why they suddenly aren't coming home. Families who might start looking for them." Lup looked at the wall of the office, in the direction of Fisher's chamber. "Unless they forget that those missing people existed." 

Lucretia sighed and was silent for a long time. Eventually she spoke up. "If this is a precedent that we're going to have to set, where everyone who joins us gets erased from the minds of everyone in existence after they die... People may not want to stay in this line of work." 

"Well then we tell them. We have a funeral honoring their sacrifice, and..." Lup trailed off. She locked eyes with Lucretia, swallowed, and continued, "we'll tell them this is what will happen from now on, and if they want to leave the Bureau they can." 

Later that week the Bureau gathered for a ceremony that would come to be known as the Last Rites, where they mourned the loss of their fallen allies, fed the details of their existence to the Voidfish, and had a feast to honor their contribution to saving the world. 

When they told the Bureau that this would be the protocol going forward, they expected a large amount of them to walk away, turn their back on the mission so they wouldn't be forgotten by the world. And some people did walk away, swearing to keep the secret that had kept these past months. But the vast majority of the agents stayed where they were. 

Johann cleared his throat when Lup and Lucretia looked at each other in confusion. 

"Ma'am, Lup, we accepted this job because we wanted to save the world. I think that for most of us, that desire to help won't disappear just because we might die and be forgotten before we make it. And frankly, I personally don't think I deserve to be remembered if I walk away from this." 

Lup smiled as tears welled up in her eyes. "Thank you, Johann, that's a beautiful way of living your life." 

Lucretia smiled and turned to the rest of the Bureau. "Thank you all for your continued assistance. Ideally this is an eventuality that we didn't need to plan for, but nonetheless we greatly appreciate you're standing by us. Now let us remember the friends we've lost, and tomorrow we can go back to work recovering the Relics." 

Spirits were ultimately high that night, everyone confident that despite recent setbacks, it wouldn't be long before one of the Relics was found and taken care of. Unfortunately, it would be quite some time before their efforts culminated in the world being made any safer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Looks like I broke my streak of updating regularly, sorry about that. But this chapter is longer than any others before it, so hopefully that makes up for it! Just one more chapter this arc, then a short hiatus for me to firm up how part 3 will go! Let me know what you thought of this chapter!


	8. Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lup takes some time off of chasing after the Oculus and gives some advice to a new member of the Bureau.

The doors to the hangar bay slid open and Lup strode purposefully across the Quad, barely noticing the people greeting her as she went past them. She marched towards her and Lucretia's office, Umbra Staff still in hand. She stared off into the distance ahead of her, barely taking in what she was seeing, focusing more on the plan forming in her head than the sights of the moonbase. 

Lucretia’s head shot up with a start as Lup burst into the office. “Goodness, Lup you look exhausted!” She shouted, “We haven’t heard from you in days, where have you been?” 

“My last lead on the Oculus came up empty, but I have a new idea, I just came back to change,” Lup said, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “The halfling who stole it had a cousin just outside of Neverwinter, I think she might have visited him after leaving the Bureau-” 

“Lup,” Lucretia interjected, “I think you should take a moment to calm down, you’ve been at this for so long, you still need rest.” 

Lup shook her head and continued, “No listen Lucretia. Her cousin used to live essentially in poverty, but a couple months back he suddenly became wealthy enough to buy a mansion in one of the wealthiest parts of the city. I figured I’d go and ask him about how he got his money and maybe-” 

“Lup!” Lucretia interrupted, more forcefully this time. “You’ve been running yourself ragged for months now, I can’t let you keep pushing yourself like this, you need to rest before you collapse from the exhaustion!” 

“We need to find the Oculus, Lucretia! We can’t just let Jal and Will have died for no reason!” Lup argues desperately. 

“You’re absolutely right Lup, but you aren’t the only one who can find her you know.” Lucretia reasoned. “Let the Seekers and Regulators take over for a little while, at least until you’re well rested again.” 

Lup opened her mouth to argue, but Lucretia cut her off and said, “Three days, that’s all I’m asking. Please?” 

Lup’s mind raced, trying to construct a legitimate reason that she didn’t need to rest, but she finally relented. “Okay, Luc. I’ll take a few days to rest.” 

As she went to leave the office, she stopped and said, “Thank you, Lucretia.” 

Lucretia smiled and answered, “Of course, Lup. Someone needs to keep you from working yourself to death.” 

Lup walked back out onto the Quad and sat down to appreciate the sights. Despite having lived aboard the moonbase for a year and a half already, she never got tired of the view. It rested far higher in the sky than the Starblaster ever had, and when the ship was this high above the worlds they visited, it was because they were running away from the Hunger, so they could never appreciate the sight of the world below. Being on the base and staring out at the expanses of Faerun and being able to look up and see the stars beyond it truly was a sight nearly unparalleled across the entire century the IPRE spent traveling, and she hadn't taken nearly enough time to enjoy the view. 

Despite that, the moonbase still paled in comparison to the Starblaster for a simple reason: The family. She still had Lucretia, and to some extent Davenport, and the agents of the Bureau were wonderful people, but they couldn't replace the bonds that were formed over a century of being removed from time with the only six people who could possibly understand what that does to a person. Nothing could replace her bond with Taako, or the friends she found in Magnus or Merle, or the love she found with Barry. She smiled at the thought of reuniting with them all, and the day they could stop running from the Hunger and stop living in guilt over creating the Grand Relics. 

Lup was pulled from her daydreaming when she heard a group of people talking as they went past her. She looked up to see Johann and Brian talking with a few of the new Regulators. 

"This place is a lot more beautiful now that my head isn't spinning." Said a scrawny dragonborn, "The stars are more amazing than I've ever seen from down there." 

"Oh I know, it's simply breathtaking, is it not?" Brian replied. 

"It's nice, but nothing can top spending time with the Voidfish if you ask me." Johann countered, seeming more chipper than usual. 

"Yeah it's nice, but I really should get to the Arena, I'm itching for a fight." Said the other Regulator, a muscular orc woman. "I haven't really gotten a good exercise for a while and... Hey, who's that?" 

Lup realized she had been staring, and she sheepishly grinned as she introduced herself. "The name's Lup, I'm the Lead Reclaimer, and one of the founders of the Bureau of Balance, welcome aboard!" She stretched a hand out the woman. "Who might you be?" 

"Oh, I'm uh- my name's Killian, ma'am." Killian stuttered. She seemed flustered, but shook Lup's hand regardless. She turned to the others and said, "You guys can go on ahead, I'll meet you guys after I go to the Arena." 

They looked at each other unsure, but they went on their way nonetheless. Lup watched as they walked away, then she turned to look at Killian in confusion. 

"I didn't mean to pull you away from your friends, I was just introducing myself and welcoming you, you can go catch up with them, you know?" She suggested, gesturing towards the trio as they headed towards the Fantasy Gashapon. 

"Oh that's okay boss," Killian replied, shrugging. "I was just about to break off and get in some exercise anyway. They're nice and all, but they're just coworkers really. They're just being polite and showing me around since I'm new." 

"I wouldn't be so sure of that Killian," Lup answered, "Even if people do start out as 'just coworkers' you never know who you might come to love." 

Killian blushed at that. "Love? Isn't that a little extreme? I mean, I've only been here a few days and..." She trailed off, unsure of where she was going. 

Lup laugh and raised her hands defensively. "Not the kind of love I meant, bud." She corrected, "I mean love as if they're your family. Bonds grow whether you want them to or not, it's honestly better to just embrace them and see where they go." 

Killian looked in the direction of the group, and Lup continued, "If you try to deny the bonds being made between you and those around you, you end up wasting a lot of time that you could spend filling yourself and others with immeasurable happiness. And take it from me kiddo, no matter how much time you think you might have left, It's not enough." 

Killian looked back at Lup. "'Kiddo?' You don't look that much older than I am you know." Killian paused, then said, "but you are an elf, I've never really been sure how aging works for you guys." 

Lup laughed at that, then answered, "Who does, honestly?" She smiled at Killian and finished her speech with, "Just think about what I said, embrace friends where you find them. You may be surprised at who sticks around. They might even become such an important piece of you that you forget how you ever got on without them." 

Killan smiled back, and said, "You know what, you make a good point, I'll be sure to think about that from now on. Thanks boss." 

"Any time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And it's done! This is the last chapter of Building the Bureau, I'm gonna take a short break now to get ahead of the chapters in the next arc and maybe write some other stuff for a bit, but I'll be back to this soon! It won't take me more than two months to get back to it this time lol  
> Let me know what you thought of this chapter!


End file.
